Together Forever

Chapter 8.3

To "Wash Her Hands and Make Soup"

Aromas from the kitchen came wafting in in waves.

Turning her head away to the side, she stared at the light of the kitchen and murmured under her breath, "You clearly just did something bad, and then you go pretending to be innocent."

He let his chin rest upon her shoulder and then exaggeratedly breathed in the aromas. "What are you saying behind my back?"

She shook her head, also feigning innocence.

Gu Pingsheng suddenly sniffed at the air again. "I think I smell something burning."

Tong Yan cried out in alarm, and when she dashed over, she discovered that, sure enough, the beef was burnt.

And so, just like that, her first time stewing beef ended up as an offering to the garbage can.

Originally, she had wanted to simply remove the burnt sections, and, though it would be scraping by, there would at least still be some left. Gu Pingsheng, though, very adamantly educated her that eating burnt food could cause cancer, thereby successfully crushing all her thoughts of being able to manage the home diligently and frugally.

Fortunately, there will still a few other dishes.

In particular, there was something she was certain he would like.

Soft, silken tofu pudding with cilantro sprinkled on top and mixed with a "thousand year sauce[1]."

Tong Yan set it down in front of him. It definitely tasted pretty good. She had secretly had a taste.

Smiling, Gu Pingsheng picked up a spoon and ate a couple of spoonfuls. Then, he ate another couple of spoonfuls, all the while not lifting his head. Hence, she was not able to ask him anything and could only pull over a chair to take a seat and watch him in eager anticipation.

From this angle, she could see he was smiling, his dimple etched deeply on his cheek.

She propped her chin up on her hand and gazed at him until he had finished eating his entire bowl of savoury tofu pudding. When he lifted his head to look at her, she finally could ask, "Taste good?"

"Tastes very good." He pulled out a napkin and wiped his mouth. "Extremely good."

A single affirmation of "tastes good" caused her to be exhilarated for a long time. Even after they had finished dinner, when she was watching him wash the dishes, she still could not help secretly delighting in it.

Gu Pingsheng's home was not far from the store where she worked her part-time job. 'On Monday, he had already suggested to Tong Yan that she stay over at his home on Saturday night, and that way, she could sleep in a little longer on Sunday morning.

In the beginning, she had felt a little shy about this, but after thinking it over, she concluded that it was not a big deal.

However, when she was actually standing in his bathroom, hugging her clothing to herself and getting ready to take a shower, she at last realized that it really was a big deal. So nervous. Honestly, so nervous. Fortunately, the water temperature was warm enough, and he had prepared all the necessary things for her.

The entire showering process basically went smoothly, and no unexpected incidents occurred.

Only after she had put on all of her clothing did she face the mirror and breathe out in relief.

A foggy layer of condensation covered the mirror, and because the temperature of the room was very high, there were no indications at all that it would be dissipating. Stretching out her hand, she randomly drew a couple of scribbles on the glass, and then, somehow, as if guided by a supernatural force, she wrote the character of his surname, "Gu."